


Ultraviolence

by orphan_account



Series: Lana Del Rey Song Prompts [3]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Domestic Violence, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak is So Done, Eddie Kaspbrak is a Mess, Gay Eddie Kaspbrak, Gay Richie Tozier, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Physical Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Richie Tozier Has ADHD, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier is a Mess, Richie and Eddie are 25, Soft Richie Tozier, The abuse is between richie and an original character, Unhealthy Relationships, Verbal Abuse, other characters to be added - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:54:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26098198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: An excerpt from this work: "Eddie playfully shoved him, though Richie felt panic run cold through his veins at the gesture, and he stepped back, holding an arm up in defense. To this, Eddie cocked his head to the side and questioned, “What was that all about? I’m not going to beat you up, dude.” He stared at Richie’s face, he still had those long eyelashes and thick-rimmed glasses, but a dark red mark painted his left cheek and Eddie put the few pieces he had together. Maybe he just got into a fight with someone?"
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Richie Tozier/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Lana Del Rey Song Prompts [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1867363
Comments: 18
Kudos: 55





	1. Jim Brought Me Back...

**Author's Note:**

> TRIGGER WARNINGS: Domestic abuse and PTSD: may get very graphic.
> 
> This is definitely going to be a more serious fic with of course some humor, but I do NOT take this subject lightly. I absolutely despise any and every form of abuse, however I do find the concept something that should really be explored on both sides. Sometimes abuse happens due to addictions, sometimes it happens due to mental health disorders, either way it is completely unjustifiable and disgusting. Mainly I will explore how Richie's/Eddie's mental health is affected by the situation, and coming from my own experiences/research I can say that I should be able to help people perceive it in an understandable light. But I'll also show how and why his boyfriend is abusive towards him. I hope you can enjoy the story, don't worry the ending will be happy!

Richie stared out the window, watching droplets of rain hit the ground and make that familiar pitter-patter noise as they did so. The sky, gray and cloudy, the grass wet from the rain, the road in front of the house dark and slippery, it all seemed to have a depressive effect on the town. Over the quiet sounds of nature and cars passing by, Richie heard the door slam open then shut. “Jim?” He called out for his boyfriend of two years in a slight panic, turning in his chair.

“Why wouldn’t you pick up your phone?” Jim, a tall man with freckles across his nose and chestnut brown hair, questioned, soaking wet. He reminded Richie so much of his childhood, that was something he was never going to let go of. 

“It’s dead- I texted you that, remember? You took the charger with you...”

Jim let out a sigh. “Come here.” He demanded, so Richie obliged, his weary steps growing more shaky, now the sound of the rain was beginning to grow louder, thumping against the ground outside as if it were hailing. When he approached his boyfriend, he looked up at the man with pleading eyes. Jim pulled him into a hug, at first the energy was sweet like honey, though it turned sour like a lime when Jim brought his hand up to Richie’s hair and roughly pulled it back, getting a high off the painful cry he let out. “You just _have_ to blame me, don’t you?”

“I’m sorry, my bad,” Richie whimpered, his eyes glowing with fear.

“Damn right it’s your bad. Be glad I’m too tired to hit that pretty face of yours, ‘Chee.” Jim told him, using that nickname that made Richie’s insides melt like chocolate to the point where he ignored the overtly abusive tone. Jim took his hand away from Richie’s hair, now using it to tilt up the boy’s head by his chin. “Don’t be so scared, it looks ugly on you.” He said, before pinching Richie’s cheek roughly then walking into the bedroom. 

Richie lifted his hand up to the spot he was pinched, stuck in awe over the man. He loved him, loved him more when he would strike him or yell at him for minor inconveniences, at least that's what he told himself. And he never quite knew why. Maybe it was the pure fact that he gave Richie the time of day to “correct” him or try to “fix” him. Maybe it's because he reminded him of when he wasn't alone, when he had friends. Should he feel grateful? Should he feel guilty?

  
  



	2. Reminded Me Of When We Were Kids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Richie and Eddie meet once again!

Richie stood outside of the bathroom door for about five minutes, contemplating on whether to knock or not. As of now, Jim was taking a shower to get the stink of rainwater off himself, and he’d been in there an awful long time. Richie swallowed the thick lump in his throat, lifting a hand up to the door but taking it back quickly. He shook his head, deciding to walk away until he heard the water shut off, and he then froze in his weak steps. Jim opened the door with a towel wrapped around his waist, but Richie kept himself facing the wall. From behind, he felt the man wrap his arms around his waist and start roughly laying kisses down his neck. Richie didn’t enjoy such rough kisses, sometimes he wished Jim would be gentle, but he would shove those thoughts away believing they were too selfish. 

“Take your clothes off.” Jim demanded in a raspy voice.

“I really don’t want to tonight… can’t we just do something else? Please?” Richie begged. He hated sex with this man, it was painful, dirty. Sometimes he would even cry afterwards once Jim fell asleep.

Jim groaned, “Are you fucking kidding? My day has been this shitty and you’re gonna act like this? What, you wanna make it _more_ shitty? You want to make my life shitty?” He kept asking these demeaning questions, Richie felt tears well up in his glimmering, amber eyes. He responded, cheeks turning a light cherry pink, “Please, I don’t want to argue.”

In a fit of rage, Jim turned the boy around and struck him right across the face as hard as he could, forcing the boy onto the floor. As Jim felt the relief run through his body at his own despicable actions, Richie tightly shut his eyes, and began weeping. 

“Fuck! Do you see what you did?! You always manage to piss me off in the worst fucking ways!” Jim scolded, the venom in his voice making Richie’s heart ache with sorrow. Richie thought he was being good, but he supposed not good enough. He was never good enough for this man. He kept crying, repeating the same words over and over, “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to hurt you.”

Jim scoffed, shoving Richie out of the way with his leg and muttering curses to himself. The burn from the slap still throbbed violently, Richie just knew there would be a bruise tomorrow. He felt so horrible for making Jim feel this way, he didn’t deserve him. He never did. Richie really thought that _he_ was the abuser here. When would he realize how far that is from the truth?

The time passes slowly, each second more agonizing than the next. He stopped crying, but of course the wounds in his chest still burned from the words Jim yelled at him. He never wanted to hurt anyone, regardless of that tough “I don’t care” front he would put up all the time for others. He wished he could change for Jim, that he could be the person he deserved. How could he? With all of his crippling insecurities and constant emotional episodes, he knew he couldn’t. Why didn’t Jim just leave him already? Why didn’t he get someone better? Well, that’s just it. Someone as desperate as poor Richie would not come along easily, Jim knew that for a fact. That’s why he continued to torture him with his cruel words and physical abuse, because Richie would never leave him, God only knows why. 

He needed to smoke. Richie lifted himself up from the ground where he sat leaning against the bed and hugging his knees, walking out to the living room to a spot under the couch where he hid his cigarettes from Jim, he didn’t like the taste of nicotine. Richie pulled one out of the pack along with a blue Bic lighter and quietly placed it back in the spot, quickly heading out the door so Jim wouldn’t see him.

The night was dark, the rain became light, and he felt sprinkles of water fall onto his messy hair. He cupped his hand around the cigarette that he held in his mouth, lighting it with ease. Richie shoved the lighter back into his jacket pocket and took a long puff off the cigarette, feeling the slight relief overwhelm how much he wanted to break down and cry right there. The smoke disappeared into the sapphire sky as he lifted his head up to watch it blow away. He felt at peace until he bumped into a short man, who scoffed, “Hey, watch i-!” The man looked up at Richie, and they both immediately recognized one another, gleaming smiles taking over their faces at all the memories flooding back to their minds.

“Richie?!” He cried.

“Eddie?!” Richie cried back. He pulled the shorter boy into a bear hug, keeping the lit cigarette at a safe distance. Eddie hugged him just as tightly, laughing lightly. “I didn’t know you lived here!” The hug, so soft, so gentle, this was a foreign feeling that Richie hadn't experienced since he was just a kid. He buried his face into Eddie's shoulder covered by a thick jacket, suddenly the light lavender scent sent waves of more memories into his mind, ones that he never thought he would forget.

Richie released him, replying, “I didn’t know you walked out in the streets at the middle of the night. Where the hell have you been?”

“Going to college, working, what you would describe as boring shit.” Eddie rolled his beautiful eyes, making the butterflies in Richie’s chest flutter while he threw the cigarette onto the ground and stepped it out. 

Richie laughed, “Booooring! Where do you work- oh wait, let me guess; a fucking bank.”

Eddie playfully shoved him and laughed, though Richie felt panic run cold through his veins at the gesture, and he stepped back, holding an arm up in defense. To this, Eddie cocked his head to the side and questioned, “What was that all about? I’m not going to beat you up, dude.” He stared at Richie’s face, he still had those long eyelashes and thick-rimmed glasses, but a dark red mark painted his left cheek and Eddie put the few pieces he had together. Maybe he just got into a fight with someone?

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to freak you out.” Eddie apologized, placing an arm on Richie’s shoulder as gently as he could to comfort him while sending a gaze filled with honey towards his way. Richie melted into the touch, adoring how sweet it was. Adoring that _Eddie_ was touching him. Then he remembered something. He used to love Eddie. Loved him more than he could ever think to imagine. And he still does. “You didn’t freak me out, I was just… doing spontaneous yoga.” Richie lied.

Eddie frowned at that. “That’s a lie. But here,” He began, pulling out a small, crumpled piece of paper and a pen from his pocket. “Trade phone numbers?”

Richie stepped closer, feeling safe once again. Eddie wrote down his own, tearing the paper and handing it to Richie. Then Richie wrote his, but for a small moment, he locked eyes with Eddie and realized just how much he still loved this boy. The thought only made him want to cry even more. Once he finished writing his number down, Eddie looked at it and smiled. He then began walking away but called out, “See you around, Tozier!”

“See ya ‘round, Kaspbrak!” Richie called back, grinning as he held the small piece of paper close to his chest and sighed happily once Eddie looked away. 

  
  
  



	3. Jim Told Me That...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now we get a perspective on how our dear Eddie feels for his childhood best friend.

The rain stopped once Eddie walked away. Not the Richie noticed, he had been too preoccupied with the number he held close to his heart as he walked back home. Though he was scared of what the outcome might be if Jim found out he’d left, let alone talked to another boy. Why couldn’t he ever feel safe in that man’s cold arms? Was it just in his head? Richie’s steps slowed as he found himself outside the house, anticipating every moment with doubts and regret. He should throw the number out, he should make an excuse, find _something_ to avoid what he was most scared of at the moment.

“Don’t be scared, he loves you. That’s why he cares so much about making you... act right… man up, Trashmouth!” Richie said to himself, not fully able to believe a single word that slipped from his quivering lips. For someone who got all A’s in school, he really couldn’t use his brain sometimes, especially when he tried to excuse such awful behavior. Not that it was his fault that his coping mechanisms were more harmful than helpful.

When he was with Eddie he felt so safe. He felt like he wouldn’t get hurt if he did or said something out of line. Maybe that’s how friends were. Richie felt guilty for still being in love with those solar eclipse eyes and soft, chestnut brown hair, but he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t help staring at those thin pink lips and small hands that he prayed to one day hold in his own. Jim would really hurt him if he knew this. _I’d deserve it too._ Richie thought to himself. No, he did nothing to deserve the beatings he received over the past two years, not once. Not the spouts of anger taken out on him over practically nothing. He felt alone in this relationship, but at the same time he felt like he was drowning. 

Richie walked carefully up to the door, opening it quietly like he was walking on eggshells. He still kept the paper close to his chest, holding it tightly to keep his cool. As long as he had thoughts of Eddie, he didn’t feel so scared. When the door opened, he found Jim standing there with his arms crossed and brows furrowed furiously. “Where have you been?”

“Uhm… I just went for a walk. I didn’t want to bother you anymore.” Richie replied.

Jim’s face softened at that. “Oh… you’re not lying, are you?”

“You know how hard it is for me to lie,” Richie said with a weak smile.

His boyfriend chuckled. “Yeah, I do. Hey, what’s that in your hands?”

**…**

As if on cloud nine, Eddie smiled greatly at the paper in his hands. He never thought he would see Richie again, he’d given up on trying to find his childhood crush. After Eddie moved away to go to college, he realized how miserable he felt without his best friend by his side. No one to make silly jokes to brighten his day, no one to walk with at night as the sun set over the gloomy horizon. The day he first walked alone was the day he realized he didn’t just have a crush, he loved him. Both as family and as something more. Sometimes he would find himself holding back the tears that stung his eyes from the pain of knowing he might never see him again. Regardless, he kept that love he had for the boy and thought of that beautiful smile Richie had every day when he felt upset.

Now that they’ve reunited, he felt like he’s fallen in love all over again in the span of five minutes. Richie still had the same messy handwriting and the same goofy glasses, but he seemed more on edge. Like he was afraid of something, especially when Eddie lightly pushed him. What is it that he could be so scared of? Eddie assumed he’d gotten into a fight, but there was always the assumption that he was being… mistreated. Eddie prayed that wasn’t the case, it would just break his heart if that were going on. 

He eventually decided to call him tomorrow, possibly around twelve knowing how late Richie used to wake up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! You may have noticed how Jim wasn't particularly mean in this chapter, I don't believe that all abusers are abusive 24/7. For Jim's case, he is only mean when he gets angry.


	4. Loving Him Was Never Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens after Jim finds the number?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! I've been getting lots of support on this fic and I'm not even on the fifth chapter yet! I really do love and appreciate all of you tuning in and reading my work, even if it is really angsty and depressing. Don't worry, I adore writing fluff so soon you'll see some!

Jim found the paper that Richie shakily handed over, let’s just say that he didn’t take it too kindly. Once again, Richie found himself sobbing on the ground with a bruise forming around his right eye along with a pang in his chest from a few hurtful words. He told Jim the truth, and he said that he wanted to meet this “Eddie” that Richie was so fond of. 

“It- just the number I got from a friend, nothing special.” Richie said, though he felt it was more special than he let on. Jim snatched it away from Richie’s hands, looking it over as if there would be a name or heart on it as well. “Who?” He demanded.

“Um, Eddie. Childhood friend, remember? I met him in Derry.” 

“So what, you want to hook up with him or something? You don’t think I deserve you anymore?” Jim asked, once again trying to put Richie through these mental gymnastics as he always did when he felt the least bit insecure. 

“That’s not it at all! You don’t have to assume the fucking worst out of everything, you know!-” Richie snapped, but Jim cut him off there with a punch right to the face, managing to even break Richie’s glasses, watching as they fell to the floor in pieces. He yelled with a demeaning tone, “Don’t _ever_ fucking yell at me! Do you hear me? Get in the fucking house before you make another scene!”

Richie whimpered as he held a hand over one of his teary eyes, “I can’t even see thanks to you, jackass! You broke my glasses!” He knelt down, trying to find the fallen frames but had no luck with such poor eyesight, plus an eye that was beginning to swell. While his hand was on the ground, he felt someone stomp right onto his hand which made a finger bend oddly with a crack. “Fuck!” Richie cried from the sheer agony, trying to take his hand back to no avail. Jim knelt, causing the pain to worsen as it began to run up Richie’s arm. He pulled on Richie’s dark curls, yanking his head to face him and said, “You wanna run that by me again?”

The dark-haired boy shook his head, one eye open wide as the other continued to swell shut. Jim released him, stepping off of his hand to then slam the door shut right in his face. He sat on his knees for a while, trembling as tears fell to the rocky ground beneath him. 

**…**

The next day arrived, during the night Richie fell asleep on the ground outside and Jim found him, sighing but deciding to carry the sleepy boy back to bed. Around twelve Eddie called Richie’s phone but a strange voice picked up and grumbled out a, “Who is this?” deep and raspy.

_“It’s Eddie- did I call the wrong number?”_

“Oh, it’s you. No, he’s not allowed to have control over who he talks to on the phone. What do you want?” He replied.

_“Um… don’t you think that’s a bit overbearing?”_

“Just tell me what you want! I’m busy!”

_“Jesus fuck! I wanted to talk to my fucking friend, you freak. Would you calm down?”_

Jim groaned, “ _Fine._ Rich! Some bastard wants to talk to you!” Richie came running in, panic on his face until he took the phone and realized who called. “Hey, Eds!” Jim snarled at the nickname, making Richie wince.

_“Hey- who the fuck was that?”_

“Just Jim, we’re- uh… dating.” Richie began, walking out of the room to pace around the kitchen. 

_“Well, he’s a dick. Do you still want to meet up?”_

“Hell yeah! Wanna meet at that shitty café by the park?” Richie asked.

_“Sure! How does three sound?”_

Richie beamed. “Sounds good to me, Eduardo. See ya!”

_“See you there!”_

He hung up the phone, feeling heat on the back of his neck when he came back to reality. “Making plans to cheat on me?” Jim asked.

Richie jumped at his cold voice. “What? No, I would never cheat on you.”

“So I can go with you then?” 

“Yeah… of course.”

  
  



	5. I Can Hear Sirens, Sirens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They meet at the café, but it doesn't go as well as planned.

Eddie arrived a little early to the café, leaning against his car as he waited in the parking lot. He couldn’t help but dwell on how horrible this guy that Richie was dating sounded. The man had complete control over his phone? _What a fucking asshole…_ Eddie thought. Surprisingly, Richie turned up early as well, with a man who was driving him. _Great._

Richie seemed to be distressed, wearing dark sunglasses in the passenger seat until he saw Eddie, who he gave a huge grin that made Eddie grin back. Jim noticed, immediately smacking him on the arm and making his pretty smile fade away. Eddie scowled at the man, but he didn’t see. They parked next to Eddie’s car, Richie jumping out with joy and running up to hug his old best friend. Jim got out as well, slamming the door behind him and walking up to pull Richie away. He said sternly, “You have five minutes, hurry up.”

Richie turned to him with a frown. “What? I haven’t seen him in seven years and you give me five minutes to talk to him?”

“I have somewhere to be, but you never fucking listen.”

“No you don’t!”

Jim’s brows furrowed as Eddie stared at the man with a cold glare. “Fine, you wanna be that way?” The tall man went over and back into the car, starting it up and revving the engine before yelling out of the window, “You can walk home, then! See you later, asshole!” then he drove off, Richie not even attempting to chase after, he just stood in shock then sat down on the curb with his head in his hands. 

Eddie walked up to Richie, sitting down next to him and putting an arm over the boy’s shoulders. “That’s the guy?”

“Yeah,” Richie sighed. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s not your fault, why are you apologizing?” Eddie questioned.

“Yes it was, I shouldn’t have yelled.”

With a brow raised, Eddie said, “You have a right to yell, he was being a dick.”

For a few peaceful moments, they sat in silence as the sunlight shone around them brightly, the soft tweets of birds could be heard from the trees nearby. Richie broke the silence, “You wanna go in?”

“Yeah, come on big guy.” He said, lending a hand to help Richie up, who seemed confused at the gesture. He took it wearily, realizing this wasn’t going to end with him getting hit because Eddie would never even think of treating someone so horribly. Well, maybe Jim.

They walked in together, sitting down at the nearest booth across from each other. They joked around for a while, catching up and trying to forget to whole tantrum that Richie’s boyfriend just threw. And in that hour, they both thought and wished it would never end. 

But it got dark real fast when Eddie asked, “Why are you wearing sunglasses inside?”

“They’re prescription, my other ones broke.” Richie shrugged.

“How?”

Richie swallowed a lump in his throat, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “J-just a fight I got into...”

“With who?” Eddie asked, arms crossed and already knowing the answer.

He stayed silent, leg bouncing up and down under the table until Eddie noticed. Eddie assumed the worst, his partner must have been responsible. He asked and Richie nodded lightly, to which Eddie leaned over and took the glasses off seeing that Richie’s beautiful eye had been swollen shut and a dark purple. He gasped, “He did that to you?”

“I was yelling, really, it’s okay. He’s not always like that, he even carried me to bed when I fell asleep outside-”

“You fell asleep _outside?_ ”

“Look, I’m fine, Eds. It’s not like I died or anything.” He said, waving a hand when Eddie noticed that Richie’s finger was wrapped and covered by a metal piece to keep it straight. “What happened to your finger?”

Richie laughed, “This isn’t twenty questions, Eddie.”

“Do you really not see what he’s doing to you?” Eddie asked softly.

His smile died once again, he looked down at his hands and sighed. Yes, he knew. Eddie spoke, “He’s hurting you, Rich. I don’t care if he can be nice, if he hurts you at all then you shouldn’t be with him.”

“You don’t understand, I can’t leave him. I love him, Eddie… I can’t be alone again,” Richie trailed off, feeling tears fall down his cheeks as he broke down right there. Eddie went to grab his shaky hands, holding them gently and speaking with a soft voice, “You won’t be alone, I’ll stick by you through it all.”

Richie looked up at his friend, feeling his heart swell. “Eds...”

“Come on, you can stay with me for a while. I’m not letting you go back with that shithead.” Though the gesture seemed small to Eddie, it appeared as one of the most loving things someone has done for him since he began dating Jim. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahahaha yeah i know the sunglasses covering a black eye is cliche dont rub it in


	6. Loving You Was Really Hard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie takes Richie home with him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just have to say really quickly thank you all for your love and support, it's really motivating me to write more every day! I love you all and I'm super freaking grateful that you're reading along!

It was what Eddie most feared… that flinch along with the bruises meant something all too dark and terrifying than he’d hoped for. Right now, Richie needed help. Some may say that he’s “broken”, Eddie didn’t believe that. No, he wasn’t broken. He didn’t need to be “fixed”. He needed to be free of a grasp he had held onto for much too long, though Eddie didn’t quite understand why he wouldn’t let go. Richie said he loved Jim, which Eddie doubted. What struck him was that the boy didn’t want to be alone again, as if he were codependent on a partner and without them there he would fall apart, abusive or not. 

Richie didn’t really know just why he stayed with the man either. He reminded him so much of Eddie, maybe that alone made it so that he couldn’t let go of his childhood and childhood best friend that he’d suppressed his love for during all those years. When Eddie went to college, he felt abandoned. Of course, he would never say that, he couldn’t guilt trip Eddie into leaving great opportunities behind, that would be selfish. He wasn’t worth any more of Eddie’s time. However, that didn’t stop the tight knot from welling in his chest whenever he looked over to see that Eddie wasn’t there. So, he moved. Maybe moving away would make him forget. Instead, he met someone who oddly looked like his best friend, but didn’t act like him. He replaced the love he had for Eddie with the newly found love he had for Jim, though it never did keep him from crying in the middle of the night when he knew he may never be able to see Eddie again. Richie wasn’t dumb, he knew that relying on others just to survive was unhealthy, especially someone who hurt him, but he didn’t think he deserved better. Jim did below the bare minimum, he barely loved the boy, but Richie found that he never did a thing to warrant better treatment. 

When Eddie drove him to his house, he was scared that he might slip up and get kicked to the curb like Jim has done so many times, though he found that it wasn’t going to happen. Instead, Richie kept his head leaning against the cold window while Eddie gave him time to think and process what was going on. They arrived to Eddie’s house about seven minutes later which already looked clean, and they weren’t even inside yet. Richie looked over in the passenger seat at Eddie, asking, “Are you sure you’re okay with me staying here?”

Eddie sighed, “Richie, I’m not a monster. What kind of shitty friend would I be to just let you go back there?”

“He’s gonna be pissed… when he finds me he’s going to beat me rough, Eddie,” Richie said, feeling a breakdown coming on. “I don’t like it when he hits me, Eddie. I try telling myself it’s a good thing, I try telling myself it’s a good thing, but it hurts so fucking bad,” Richie admitted through a cloud of tears and his cracking voice. Eddie knew he had to stay strong, but seeing his friend this vulnerable and scared… it was painful. He got up and out of his seat, walking to the other side of the car to give Richie a tight hug, letting him cry into his shoulder for as long as he needed to while Eddie tried his best to soothe him by stroking his soft curls and rocking back and forth. “I know, Rich. That’s why we’re going to get you out of there, I’ll never let that fucker touch you again. Not while I’m still alive.”

Richie hugged back with trembling arms, his grasp weak and frail. Each and every sound outside made Richie jump, loud or quiet. But Eddie had helped him cool down enough for them to get inside where they sat on the comfy white couch together.

“You’ll be okay as long as you’re with me, right?” Eddie asked, rubbing Richie’s back.

Richie nodded, letting out a choked laugh, “If you don’t kick me out for making a mess.”

Eddie rolled his dark brown eyes. “I’m not that mean!”

“I know, I know,” Richie laughed, sadness and fear disappearing out of his system as he talked with Eddie. 


	7. Heaven Is On Earth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELL, it's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry for such a messy update schedule, I am terrible with multi-chapter projects ;-;

The day had gone by ever so quickly, Eddie and Richie exchanging laughs as the sun went down and began to create swirls of pink and orange in the clear sky. Soon, it started getting late, Richie worrying more and more on whether or not Jim was going to somehow find him in the dead of night and beat him senseless. He finally fell asleep at around two in the morning, Eddie of course checking upon him the whole night with concern. 

He walked in an hour after he fell asleep to see Richie tossing and turning violently, asleep but having a nightmare. Eddie ran over, waking him up as gently as possible and saying, “Rich? Wake up, Richie, it’s Eddie,”

Richie woke up with a jolt, sitting up and shaking, yet melting into Eddie’s touch like he always did. He turned to meet Eddie’s gaze, “Eds?”

“Don’t call me that,” Eddie said, smiling big that Richie was out of his distressed state. Richie pulled the other boy into a bear hug and laughed, “Thank fuck that was just a dream,” Eddie hugged him back, rubbing his hand over his spine where he could just feel the bruises through his silky-soft t-shirt. “Just a dream, Rich, you’re safe.”

Eddie released his friend to look up at him, a disheveled boy with those black, grandiose curls sticking to the sweat that previously formed over his forehead. His cheeks, they began to fade from that deep red to his original pale complexion. Richie didn’t think, he pressed his lips against Eddie’s in a flash, his trembling hands on the other boy’s shoulders. Eddie smiled into the kiss, feeling his chest heat up and flutter as if a thousand butterflies had just hatched from their formed cocoons. 

They were going to be alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you have all enjoyed this short little story! I know it's not the best but I did enjoy writing the brief chapters.

**Author's Note:**

> I love any and all criticism, so please leave your thoughts in the comments and I will make sure to try and reply to them all!  
> Also how would you guys feel if I posted a fic on richie dressing as a woman to get back at the guys for staring at bev at the quarry? ive had it in the works for months now


End file.
